A summer programme launched by Onside Bahrain aims to engage youth in campaigns and forums which tackle key issues.

For an organisation that was established in June this year, Onside Bahrain has already racked up an impressive list of achievements, with many more in the pipeline.

A volunteer support group, which is young both in terms of the age of its volunteers and its attitude, it has the objective of supporting and promoting youth engagement, inspiring leadership and fostering a lifelong commitment towards active citizenship.

The success of its programmes can be gauged by the fact that the numbers of its registered volunteers went from 50 to 250 in two months and is steadily climbing.

Most of the volunteers are students, young professionals and unemployed Bahrainis.

Its core areas are youth development and training, mentorship, volunteerism, entrepreneurship, women empowerment, education and healthcare and environmental and social welfare.

Youth Tours
Given its youth-centric approach, Onside has launched Youth Tours, which is a summer mentorship programme. The programme started in June and ends in September, and aims to enhance the learning of a younger generation. These tours will highlight the importance of ‘on-site’ educational experiences.

“Onside regularly schedules activities to enrich the lives of youth and provide educational and productive experiences,” notes Rashid Riaz, events officer at Onside Bahrain.

“Youngsters who are interested in the project can get in touch with us through our website or Facebook profile.”

From getting to know various aspects of the business sector to voluntary work to visits to heritage and other sites of importance, the programme offers a raft of projects. “We want Bahraini youth to excel in the community and this project helps them gain a holistic insight into the area of their choice. It is a grassroots initiative, supported by government, private organisations and NGOs.”

Onside has recently organised events to commemorate Earth Day and World Environment Day. It has also held visits to the USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier, the BSPCA animal shelter and guided tours to various cultural and heritage sites across Bahrain.

“We have got a lot of support from various organisations and NGOs. In the future, we are planning visits to major industries in Bahrain such as Alba and GPIC. The visits will be to various departments so that youngsters can see how they work and understand what kind of job they are fit for,” Rashid says.

“We also organise internships for which the candidates get paid for their work, get a letter of appreciation and work experience in their chosen field.”

They will also be visiting local orphanages and old age homes, where youngsters can sign up for volunteer work, as well as a photography tour of Bahraini souqs and a trip to Bahrain International Circuit, with on-track activities.

The organisation hopes to make Bahrainis the employees of choice and is planning many programmes towards this goal. For instance, it will be holding free-ofcost English and Arabic lessons for the volunteers.